Welding equipment, e.g., metal inert gas (MIG) welding equipment, can be used for welding one metal workpiece to another metal workpiece. A welding gun can be designed to allow a user or robot to direct a metal welding wire toward a specific location on a target metal workpiece. The components of a typical welding gun include a handle, a gooseneck, a retaining head, a contact tip, and a nozzle. The welding wire is fed through the welding gun, and ultimately through a passageway in the contact tip, which is disposed at an end of the welding gun. The welding wire, when energized for welding, carries a high electrical potential. When the welding wire makes contact with the target metal workpiece an electrical circuit is completed and current flows through the welding wire, across the metal workpiece and to ground. The current causes the welding wire and the metal of the workpieces in contact with the welding wire to melt, thereby allowing workpieces to be joined. Extreme heat is caused by the resulting current flow. Since the contact tip usually includes copper or a copper alloy, the extreme heat tends to cause it to wear out relatively quickly.
Changing the contact tip usually involves removing and/or replacing other welding gun components as well, such as the nozzle or retaining head. The components of a welding gun typically have screw threads for attachment to the welding gun. Unfortunately, these threaded connections tend to loosen as the welding gun is used, requiring users to stop welding in order to re-tighten these connections, resulting in down time and losses in efficiency and productivity. In addition, loose connections can be a source of electrical resistance and in turn generate excessive heat within a welding gun. Heat in welding guns translates into shorter consumable life, tip burn back, and even melting of components.
Therefore, a need exists in the art for means of attachment of components that result in an improved and extended useful life of the components and a more secure method of attachment of the components to a welding gun.